The Foreign Service Journal, February 2013

62 FEBRUARY 2013 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Factors: Cracking the Code” by Greg Engle would be worth the price of the book. A former Peace Corps Volunteer who is now Peace Corps country direc- tor in Ethiopia, Engle draws on postings ranging from Korea and Germany to Togo and Iraq to illustrate the value of sensitivity to cultural, religious and lin- guistic differences. Those examples will be particularly relevant to private-sector managers embarking on their first over- seas job, but they are useful reminders for everyone in the Foreign Service, The discus- sion of the rela- tive cost-effec- tiveness of using Foreign Service, Foreign Service National and Third Country National staff for various functions is cogent and thought-provoking. Such a comparative approach is stimulating and should be a much more regular feature of manage- ment literature and training courses than it is now. Engle and Nagy’s recommenda- tions on how to prepare for an overseas managerial assignment are a bit over- whelming at times, even for experienced officers. But FSOs should definitely keep their comprehensive checklists handy for reference. Readers will also find tips in each chapter for keeping the home office informed and attuned to the field perspective. The authors candidly share their mistakes, as well as their successes, in dealing with overseas management challenges. Indeed, there is a Harvard Business School case study quality to this book, as you are brought into situa- tions where you ponder what your deci- sion might be and critique those of the BOOKS I’d encourage FSI to incorporate a video segment conducted by the authors into its orientation course for new chiefs of mission. The View from the Field Managing Overseas Operations: Kiss Your Latte Goodbye Gregory W. Engle and Tibor P. Nagy Jr., Vargas Publishing, 2012, $18.99, paper- back, 236 pages. Reviewed by Bob Houdek The co-authors of this book are two of the most accomplished management officers the Foreign Service has ever pro- duced. They are field men who took on tough assignments and were invigorated by challenges, whether as a general services officer or an ambassador. In their second careers as academics, Greg Engle and Tibor Nagy have collaborated on a most readable book that draws on their combined six decades of interna- tional experience. Managing Overseas Operations: Kiss Your Latte Goodbye is primarily geared to managers of international organiza- tions, diplomatic missions and nongov- ernmental organizations. But Foreign Service management officers will also appreciate its wealth of practical guid- ance. As its title suggests, this is not a dry academic treatise replete with footnotes, extensive empirical data and theoretical nostrums. Rather, it is a compilation of practical advice delivered in an informal and most digestible manner, using anec- dotes from Engle and Nagy’s careers to underline the advice being offered. The chapters are presented as meetings with one of the authors to discuss each topic. Just the chapter on “Cross-Cultural authors. They are particularly profound in discussing safety and security plan- ning, what to do when crises strike, and managing people and facilities under extreme conditions. The recent Benghazi tragedy underlines the need for this kind of systematic thinking about the unthinkable. Managing Overseas Operations: Kiss Your Latte Goodbye should be on the reading list of every U.S. firm sending managers overseas. But I also commend it to students in management courses at the Foreign Service Institute. In fact, I’d encourage FSI to incorporate a video segment conducted by the authors into its orientation course for new chiefs of mission. Bob Houdek served as chief of mission in Eritrea, Ethiopia and Uganda, deputy assistant secretary for African affairs, and national intelligence officer for Africa, among many other assignments during his 35-year Foreign Service career. He is cur- rently a retiree representative on the AFSA Governing Board. A Fateful Eight Years No Higher Honor Condoleezza Rice, Broadway Paper- backs, 2012, $18, paperback, 765 pages. Reviewed by William D. Bent As the old saying goes, “You can’t know where you are going until you know where you’ve been.” That’s one reason I strongly recommend that all foreign affairs practitioners, especially Foreign Service officers, read Condoleezza Rice’s memoirs of her time during the first George W. Bush administration as national security adviser and as Secre- tary of State during his second term. The attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and